Ellen Pompeo set to leave Grey's Anatomy to spend time with family

Ellen Pompeo, the 48 year old actress who plays Dr. Meredith Grey, said she may be leaving her hit medical drama Grey's Anatomy.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actress hinted that she may be departing the show in the next couple of years.

I’m clearly not prepared right now to make any formal announcement about what my future is on the show, but I am really feeling like we have told the majority of the stories that we can tell

Ellen Pompeo has been on Grey's since it began back in 2005, but may leave after season 16 in 2020.

The star mentioned that she was looking forward to being more available to her family.

"I'm really excited to do some new things, it's about time that I mix it up and I'm really excited about my producing career, and I'm definitely looking for a change. My children are getting older so I want to be more available to them now. I can't be an absentee mom if they're teenagers, I have to be around to whip their butts."

The actress currently has three kids under 10.

Ellen Pompeo also reassured that even though the future for her character was unclear, she still wanted to give her final seasons her absolute best.

"I still am fighting every day for the quality of the show to be good and for the actors to be happy. I still care very much about the show."